


Revelations

by Aureia



Category: Bleach
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-10-04
Updated: 2020-10-04
Packaged: 2021-03-08 02:33:37
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,226
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26818138
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Aureia/pseuds/Aureia
Summary: This is not the real summary!I am still building the world and as I want to write this also for people who never had any contact with Bleach, the first chapter will be an explanatory chapter for the world of Bleach and I would like a bit of help to keep the facts that were given up until the end of the Saving Rukia Arc and up to the first few Arrancar attacks in Karakura straight and in chronological order. After that point, it will go completely AU. Some later facts may be considered, some not, some only partially.THIS WILL ALSO TURN INTO A MULTICROSSOVER AND WITHIN THE FIRST CHAPTERS, MOST NOTABLY WITH HARRY POTTER (THE OTHER POSSIBLE FANDOMS WILL BE INCLUDED IN THE TAGS ONCE THEY ARE ACTUALLY MENTIONED WITHIN THE STORY). IT IS NOT MARKED AS SUCH YET AS I AM STILL BUILDING THE WORLD.
Relationships: Hitsugaya Toushirou & Matsumoto Rangiku, Ichimaru Gin/Matsumoto Rangiku
Kudos: 1





	Revelations

**Author's Note:**

> Allright so...here it is. The Bleach Explanation for people totally new to the fandom with a summary of what happened until the start of the story.  
> It is currently also a summary entirely based on what I remember happening in the Saving Rukia Arc  
> 
> 
> THIS WILL ALSO TURN INTO A MULTICROSSOVER AND WITHIN THE FIRST CHAPTERS, MOST NOTABLY WITH HARRY POTTER (THE OTHER POSSIBLE FANDOMS WILL BE INCLUDED IN THE TAGS ONCE THEY ARE ACTUALLY MENTIONED WITHIN THE STORY). IT IS NOT MARKED AS SUCH YET AS I AM STILL BUILDING THE WORLD.

Bleach creates a version of the afterlife, seperated into two worlds: Hueco Mundo, the world of Hollows, where corrupted spirits live and Soul Society, where souls of the dead go. Both are worlds seperate from the real world/the world of the living and can be accessed through special portals (Garganta, to reach Hueco Mundo and Senkaimon "Gate of Worlds" to reach Soul Society). Souls can also be born within Soul Society itself.

Souls that go to Soul Society end up in one of 90 districts of the Rukongai, a sprawling set of housings. The neighboorhood gets rougher with each number, with district 90 being tbe worst with the highest crime rate. Rukongai is grouped in a circle around Seireitei, the main "city" and the place where Shinigami (Soul Reaper/Death Gods) live.  
Souls normally have no actual need for food or drink, with the exception of those with a higher than base amount of Reiryoku (the amount of Spiritual Power, the potential within a spirit), which enables them to become Shinigami. Most souls possessing extra Reiryoku end up going to train it in Seireitei's Shinigami academy. Trained Reiryoku is a force called Reiatsu (Spiritual Pressure) which is the pressure the spiritual energy creates when in use, a pressure that can be felt and sensed by spiritually aware beings. 

Reiatsu isn't necessarily as high as the Reiryoku itself, as only the trained part, the part that is actually used in fights, converts into Reiatsu. In battle the amount of Reiastu (actual trained/used/converted Reiryoku) decides who gets hurt and Reiatsu (spiritual pressure) can be used to seriously affect weaker individuals. If it's high enough, it can even kill them.  
Becoming a Shinigami is a requirement to enter the Seireitei: a military organization divided into thirteen squads, the court guardian protection squads (Gotei 13), each headed by a captain (Taichou), particularly outstanding and powerful Shinigami. The Seireitei is the only place where food and drink is easily accessible. Also in the Sereitei (in Outer Seireitei) are the lands of the Noble Clans.

The Shinigami are tasked with taking care of the flow of souls, protecting the Balance between the three worlds (Living World/Real World, Soul Society, Hueco Mundo) by sending the souls of the dead on to Soul Society through Konsou (Soul Burial) and protecting souls from Hollows (corrupted souls) that make their way into the Real World/Soul Society. 

**Shinigami arts:**

Zanjutsu (sword techniques)

Hakuda (unarmed fighting techniques)

Hohou (high speed fighting techniques that are based on Shunpo (flash step))

Kido (demon magic, offensive, defensive and healing spells usually requiring an incantation and good reiatsu control). 

All these techniques are taught at Shi'no Academy  
(Shinigami Academy), though it depends on the individual how good they are at it.  
Shinigami each are assigned an asauchi (katana) which allows them to slay hollows and use Konsou (Soul Burial; they tap the soul on the forehead with the hilt of their sword, infusing it with spiritual power). Those with sufficient strenght create Zanpakutoh (Soul Cutting Weapon) out of their power, which are usually in the shape of japanese katana (swords). A Zanpakutoh is the physical representation of a Shinigami's power which is sealed inside the weapon and guarded by their Zanpakutoh spirit, a being born with their shinigami and residing in their inner world (mindscape).

There are two releases of a Zanpakutoh, each unlocking unique powers and general rise of power that is individual to the Shinigami. Not everyone can attain the first release and only a few select individuals attain the second one.  
The releases:  
**Shikai**, the first release, requires a special command and the Zanpakutoh's name- some never hear their Zanpakutoh calling out to them so they never obtain that release. A Zanpakutoh only materializes into a sealed weapon when the shinigami in question knows its name and first release.  
**Bankai**, the second release, only available after the first is mastered, is obtained by winning a fight inside your Inner World against your Zanpakutoh, which will not allow you to use it to it's full potential if they deem you too weak. It requires the Shinigami to completely subjugate their Zanpakutoh. There are very few that manage this release and they are usually awarded with the position of captain. In fact, Bankai is a requirement as captain's need to be very strong.  
There are two other ways to obtain captaincy:  
1) kill the former captain in an one on one battle  
2) a vote  
A Zanpakutoh's main goal is the protection of their Shinigami, their other half and partner (though many do not ever hear their Zanpakutkoh it is still there), so they will not give their power if the Shinigami can not control it. In the case of Seireitei's child prodigy, Captain Toushirou Hitsugaya (appearance wise a preteen with a height of 133 cm and still a child in Soul Society terms even though he is approximately 105 years old) his Zanpakutoh has sealed away a large portion if his actual power, as the full brunt of his powers would be too much for his still immature body- even so, he is powerful enough to be a captain and has also gained Bankai. Toushirou's power was so strong that he had no choice but to become a Shinigami as it was influencing the world around him, slowly killing his granny by freezing her to death as he slept (his powers are ice based, he owns the strongest ice type Zanpakutoh). Toushirou had to achieve Shikai and Bankai in order to reign the power in, because only after awknowleding his Zanpakutoh and learning it's name "Hyourinmaru" was it possible for Hyourinmaru to help control his vast power (one of the strongest captains freely admits that Toushirou's potential is so vast that he will eventually surpass him in strength), sealing a large portion of it until he becomes old and mature enough to handle it. There is also a rumour that Toushirou is the reincarnation of the Heavenly Guardian, a powerful being that is reincarnated in Soul Society every few centuries. There is no further mention what exactly the Heavenly Guardian is supposed to guard or what exactly he or she is, nor any further exploration of the Legend besides Hyourinmaru being called the Heavenly Blade, that can manipulate the weather (which Hyourinmaru definitely can).

Hollows are souls that have transformed into soul eating monsters after their death. The reason for this transformation is the complete corrosion of their chain of fate (a chain attached to a soul's chest that connects it to it's body in life, when the chain is cut for any reason, they die and the chain begins to corrode link by link), creating a hollow where their heart used to be. This happens because they lingered in the Living World after death for too long- possible reasons:  
1) overseen by the shinigami- they miss souls  
2) something keeps them there, usually a loved one who cannot let go and whom they cannot let go of  
3) immediate tranformation into a Hollow, either influenced by other Hollows or because they were murderers and other evil people in life

Hollow consume souls (the more Reiryoku they possess the better) to fill the hole in their chest, where their heart used to be and to become stronger. They will also eat their own kind for the same reason- and if they can, shinigami, a particularly tasty and energy rich meal. There are stronger versions of Hollow:  
1) Gillian- huge hollows which have consumed more than a thousand souls. They are strong but very slow. They do not appear often in the Real World or Soul Society  
2) Arrancar- hollows that have consumed so many souls that they evolved into a humanoid shape, the more human they appear the more deadly and powerful they are; they can also be created by using the Hougyoku, a powerful artefact that rips down the barrier between hollow and shinigami; arrancar are not mindless beasts like their brethren and they have swords in which part of their power is sealed which they can release with a command, similar to a Shinigami releasing their Zanpakutoh; Shinigami which are below Lieutnant/Vice Captain or Captain level do not stand a chance against them  
3) Espada- elite of the Arrancar. Even stronger than Arrancar, they often exceed a captain's power level. Only captains have a chance to survive against them in an one on one fight and even then they have to struggle for the win; Espada are extremely rare  
All hollows have a hole in place of their heart and a bone mask covering either their whole face or parts of it, if that mask shatters, they die.

When a hollow (regardless of type) is killed by a Shinigami, the souls they consumed are set free and sent on to Soul Society. The original soul that transformed into the hollow is cleansed of their sins commited as a hollow and also sent to soul society unless they were murderers, rapists or other evil people in life. In that case, they are dragged down into a subdimension: hell. It is a decision Shinigami can not influence.

There is on other "sub"dimension: the Soul Dimension, where the Soul King resides. His existence keeps the worlds separate, which is essential for their continued survival. The Shinigami assist "him" in keeping the balance though he does not interact with them directly, nor even through orders. Some Shinigami are invited/promoted to stay in the Kings Palace as his guards, forming Squad Zero.

Souls can and will also die (though they can also live for centuries when they have spiritual powers, with the oldest at the time of the first series being over 2100 years old). Upon their death, they either become part of soul society's make up, dissolving into spirit particles or are "reborn" on earth with no recollection of their former lives. It's a circle of death and rebirth.

AGING [please do give other ideas if you think the age situation is wrong...] - current main theory, please do give others (I'm still torn on this) as long as you take into account those facts:  
Byakuya is the youngest captain after Toushirou, who is a child and a preteen at that  
Gin is potentially/probably a little bit older than Byakuya  
Aizen is definitely older by about ten human years than Gin and Tousen  
Gin is roughly the same age as Rangiku Matsumoto, perhaps a teensy tiny bit older and they were both teenagers in the turn back the pendulum arc  
Mayuri was at least 18 human years old during the turn back the pendulum arc  
Aizen was at least 25 human years old during tbtp

so, onto the actual current main theory:  
Souls also mature and age differently, taking a much longer time than humans to grow. According to Rukia, the rate is multiplied by at least ten. For the sake of this story, it's like this:  
a soul that is 10 years old in Soul Society is the developmental equivalent to a 1 year old in the human world.  
So, Rukia, despite having lived for 150 years within Soul Society is still only 15 years old when compared to other humans.  
Byakuya Kuchiki, who I think is about 250 years old, would be 25 years in human terms. Just devide the Soul Society age by 10.

other theories  
OR they are lying about their actual age, which is 15 for Rukia and 25 for Byakuya and so forth. They multiply it by ten because they go by the human/living world calendar and 1 year in soul society, though it is just as long as a year in the human world (365 days, 12 months, 24 hours per day) - only there is a time difference which before the Senkaimon meant 10 years would have passed in the human world in Soul Society's one year.

OR a year in Soul Society is **significantly** shorter than a year in the real world

Ages according to current main theory:  
SOUL SOCIETY AGE / EQUIVALENT REAL WORLD AGE in years

Captains and Lieutnants:

1st Division: Genryuusai Shigekuni Yamamoto  
at least 2100 / 210 (probably older)

Chojiro Sasakibe: 800 / 80

2nd Division: Soifon 300 / 30

Omaeda 280 / 28

3rd Division: Gin Ichimaru 260 / 26

Kira Izuru 180 / 18

4th Division: Retsu Unohana 1800 / 180

Isane Kotetsu 250 / 25

5th Division: Sousuke Aizen 360 /36

Momo Hinamori 170 / 17

6th Division: Byakuya Kuchiki 250 / 25

Renji Abarai 200 / 20

7th Division: Komamura 700 / 70

Lieutnant...?

8th Division: Shunsui Kyouraku 1200 / 120

Ise Nanao 210 / 21

9th Division: Tousen Kaname 260 / 26

Shuhei Hisagi 220 / 22

10th Division: Toushirou Hitsugaya 105 / 10,5 [no, he is not an adult in a child's body, nor is he a teenager; he is **clearly and repeatedly** referred to as a child, so a child he shall be]

Rangiku Matsumoto: 260 / 26

11th Division: Zaraki Kenpachi  
Yachiru Kusajishi: 

[actually for those two I got no clue. If you go with a certain Bleach canon reveal concerning his and Unohana's relationship - which I'll ignore, thank you very much - then Zaraki should at least be old enough for others to forget who gave him the name Kenpachi and who held it before him...but clearly at that point Yachiru was already alive - but she looks about 6 years which would make her 60 not enough time for pretty much everyone to forget the last Kenpachi...so...how old exactly are they???]

12th Division: Mayuri Kurotsuchi 350 / 35 

Nemu Kurotsuchi 240 / 24 (or older, who knows when Mayuri made her)

13th Division: Juushirou Ukitake 1200 / 120

Kaien Shiba: 230 / 23

others:

Yamada Hanataro 190 / 19

Iemura 400 / 40

Kiyone Kotetsu: 180 / 18

Kotsubaki: 180 / 18

Rukia Kuchiki: 150 / 15

Kukaku Shiba: 220 / 22

Ganju Shiba: 170 / 17

Isshin Shiba: 450 / 45

What Happened So Far: 

Fifteen year old orange haired Ichigo Kurosaki could always see spirits, although he could never see hollow until one attacked his family in search of what Ichigo later learns is his own spiritual power. The hollow nearly manages to kill him, but Rukia Kuchiki, a young Shinigami who'd been searching the unusually high spiritual pressure herself, intervenes, getting incapacitated in the process. To save Ichigo and his family from the still raging Hollow, she proposes to share her powers with him by stabbing him through the heart with her Zanpakutoh. Desperate he agrees and becomes a Shinigami, while Rukia, suddenly powerless, decides to hide from the Soul Society and recover in a gigai (artifical body that allows Shinigami to interact with humans) and integrate herself into Ichigo's life who suddenly finds himself slaying hollow and sending souls on in her stead. Within a month, Rukia is accepted into Ichigo's circle of friends, whose constant contact with Ichigo's unchecked Reiatsu has awakened their own powers.  
Inoue Orihime, who is in love with Ichigo, has powers of healing and a barrier which she controls through six little spirits, the Shun Shun Rikka.  
Chad Yasutora has high endurance and his right arm, El Diablo, can release blasts of power.  
The Quincy Uryuu Ishida, who loves Inoue Orihime, had his powers long before contact with Ichigo as he is the last remnant of a spiritually aware people that uses bows made of Reishi (spirit particles) to kill Hollow. His race was once almost completely annihilated by the Shinigami for the way they took care of Hollow: unlike the Shinigami, who preserved the original soul, their bows would obliterate it. As it created a dangerous imbalance, the order was given to kill them all. Uryuu however, seems to use his powers similar to Shinigami- his arrows seem to preserve the soul [at least that is what I believe as there have been no repercussions from the Shinigami despite Uryuu killing many hollows]. Uryuu hates the Shinigami for another reason: he blames them for his grandfather's death. His grandfather was willing to adress the problem with their arrows and complied with the Shinigami- who failed to arrive and protect him from Hollows leading to his death. 

Uryuu is only half right: there was a Hollow attack and the help did arrive late, but the culprit, Head of Research and Captain of the twelfth Division Mayuri Kurotsuchi, intentionally arrived just in time to save Uryuu's grandfather from being consumed, taking the old man back to his lab with him where he proceeded to experiment on the Quincy until he died to find out everything he could about Quincy powers. Mayuri has an insatiable need to know everything and is known for his cruel experiments that frequently kill members of his own division.  
But even Uryuu begins to like and respect Rukia, realising she is innocent in his grandfathers death.  
But Ichigo and his friends growing powers attract Hollow and one day a Gillian attacks. While Ichigo does defeat him with the help of Uryuu (or rather the latter using Ichigo's out of control powers to powerhis bow to kill it), Rukia realises at once that she has to flee in order to protect them all. The appearance of a Gillian will have registered with Soul Societies systems, as those types of Hollow rarely venture out of Hueco Mundo. She knows the Soul Society has found her. Her headlong flight is stopped by her childhood best friend, the red haired Lieutnant Renji Abarai and Captain Byakuya Kuchiki, Leader of the Kuchiki Clan and her older brother (he adopted her into the clan against his family's wishes), who have been sent to retrieve her on orders of the Central 46 (the ruling body of the Seireitei) to await execution. Her crime: staying in the living world for too long and sharing her powers. Uryuu and Ichigo both try to stop them, but both end up badly hurt, with Ichigo having his spiritual centers destroyed to take away his "stolen" powers.

Desolate, Ichigo is about to give up when Kisuke Urahara, a crazy shop owner with powers who provided Rukia's Gigai appears, telling him that there is a way to become a Shinigami once more, because Byakuya failed to realize that Ichigo possessed Shininigami powers of his own when he took away "Rukia's" powers.  
Three days and rigerous, crazy training methods later, Ichigo indeed unlocks his own Shinigami powers, though he nearly turns into a Hollow in the process. Another grueling training session against Urahara himself, who reveals Shinigami powers of his own, ends in Ichigo learning the name and release of his Zanpakutoh: Zangetsu (Moon Cutter). However, due to his lack of finer Reiatsu control and his sheer strength, Ichigo's Zanpakutoh doesn't seal itself, remaining in it's unsealed Shikai state: a humungous sword, which releases a spiritual blast in the form of a black crescent called Getsuga Tenshou (Cut the heavens).  
Together with his friends, who have trained on their own with the help of a talking black cat and Uryuu, who has since become a reluctant friend, Ichigo makes his way toward Soul Society through an illegal Senkaimon created by Urahara that also allows humans to go to Soul Society without dying. They have but a week to stop the execution, which draws ever closer.  
Upon arrival, the ragtag group - after a failed attempt to break into the front gates- first makes their way to Kukaku Shiba, who lives in a strange moving house on the outskirts of Seireitei land. As a pyrotechnic, she is to help them into Inner Sereitei itself, which is protected by high walls. She curiously seems to know Yoruichi (the black cat). Kukakku shoots them into the Seireitei (literally), inside a spiritual canon ball, which they have to stabilize using their Reiatsu. Needless to say, with Ichigo's abysmal control, it doesn't quite work as intended and while the group does break in sucessfully, they are scattered throughout the Seireitei, having to face enemies by themselves. Chad faces eight division Captain Shunsui Kyouraku, who quickly defeats him, while Uryuu and Inoue are accosted by Mayuri, who subsequently admits to his involvement in the death of Uryuu's grandfather, prompting the Quincy to go all out in his fight and nearly manage to kill him [on a personal note, I am sad Mayuri escaped death...I can't stand the guy, although he does have his uses]. Ichigo breezes through his fights until he faces his first captain, the leader of the eleventh division, the fight crazy Zaraki Kenpachi, who shows Ichigo the difference between Reiryoku (Spiritual Power) and Reiatsu (Spiritual Pressure), by allowing the boy to attack him first, without defending himself. The result of this attack leaves Ichigo demoralized, as his sword doesn't even make a cut. Still, he struggles on, eventually managing to defeat the captain, who falls to the ground laughing and planning to fight Ichigo again. Inoue, who was sent away by Uryuu prior to his fight as the young man sensed Mayuri's evil, eventually meets up and gets sort of abducted by Zaraki Kenpachi who is on the search for Ichigo for a rematch, with his lieutnant Yachiru Kusajishi (a cute 60 year old brat- 6 in human terms) and now Inoue riding on his back. The unlikely group makes their way to the holding cells where in the meantime Uryuu and Chad, both hurt but treated, have been placed to break them out (Kenpachi wants their help to find Ichigo). Ichigo also fights and defeats Renji Abarai, convincing him to decide and protect Rukia, though that decision almost ends up in the redheads death as Renji has to face his own captain for that. He actually reaches the Shrine of Penitence, the High Tower with view of Sougyouku hill (the execution grounds) where Rukia is imprisoned. Rukia is not at all happy that Ichigo dares to risk his life to safe hers, having already accepted her punishment, though Ichigo's struggle does make her waver in her decision, wish it was different. But all she really cares about at this point is Ichigo and her other friends safety, which she knows is in jeopardy the longer they stay. To her horror, Byakuya himself arrives to intercept Ichigo, who is already hurt. Ichigo is saved by the arrival of Yoruichi, who Byakuya seems to know and dislike strongly, who knocks him out and vanishes with him. He wakes up in a hidden cave that hides his Reiatsu and finds out that Yoruichi, the cat he traveled with, is apparently a woman by the name of Yoruichi Shihoin. Not only that, she is the former captain of the stealth force and the second division and is nicknamed the goddess of flash for her masterful control of Shunpo and unparalled speed using the technique. (The way he finds out about her being a woman is hilarious: without any shame, she transforms back into herself- into her naked self- and proceeds to lecture the poor kid about his reckless ways while sitting in a lotus position- still stark naked)  
Once properly clothed, she then proceeds to tell him that she and Kisuke Urahara used this cave to train Bankai- here Kisuke gained it. She plans to train Ichigo to gain his own Bankai too- the catch? There are only three days left until Rukia's execution.

Meanwhile, Captain Sousuke Aizen is found murdered, utterly devastating his Second, Momo Hinamori, who ends up convinced that her childhood friend and little brother, Seireitei's child prodigy and youngest Captain Toushirou Hitsugaya, has done it after reading a letter apparently penned by her late captain before his death. Toushirou, in the meantime, has begun to look into the circumstances surrounding Rukia's planned execution (which had suddenly been advanced) and Aizen's death, connecting both and suspecting fellow Captain Gin Ichimaru whom he confronts with his accusations, only to get attacked by a grief stricken Momo, to his own shock. Reacting in defense, he knocks her out and to the ground, resuming his fight against Gin with new vigor, though Gin uses underhanded tactics and targets the unconscious Momo by attacking the young captain midair in a way he knew the child was going to have to jump aside to avoid injury, realizing moments later to his horror that it left Momo unprotected. Momo was saved by Toushirou's second in command, Rangiku Matsumoto, intervening. She blocked the strike from Shinsoh (Gin's Zanpakutoh) with her own Zanpakutoh and begged Gin to stop. Unwilling to engage her, he did. After making sure Momo was going to be alright, Toushirou made his way to the central 46 to present his findings and ask for a stay of execution. On his way he was briefly interrupted by Kira Izuru, Gin's Second acting on his captain's orders, unknowingly allowing Momo to be lured into the chambers ahead of Toushirou, believing she was following Toushirou's reiatsu.  
Before the two could really begin to fight, Rangiku arrived in order to allow Toushirou to proceed. The young boy arrived in the chambers of central 46 to find a bloodbath- every single member had been killed and must have been death long enough for all orders pertaining to Rukia and her execution to have come from someone else. He also finds Momo, who has made her way to the inner chambers in search of him only to find her beloved captain alive and well- and whose delighted hug of the man ended in being stabbed. Toushirou is horrified to find her bleeding to death on the ground and shocked to find Aizen the culprit, who provokes the young boy into attacking him in a blind rage only to mortally wound him, leaving him for dead as well.  
Both Momo and Toushirou would have died, had Captain Retsu Unohana of Division Four (the healing division) not arrived at that point, having had her own suspicions after examining Aizen's corpse, though she couldn't quite arrive at the conclusion that the body was a fake.  
Aizen congratulates her on realizing something was wrong and informs her and Isane of the real effect of his Zanpakutoh, Kyouka Suigetsu's Shikai: complete Hypnosis. The moment anyone sees him release his Zanpakutoh, they become subject to his manipulations. Aizen can manipulate sight, smell, touch and even spiritual sense (making someone believe they were stabbing him when instead they were attacking thin air or someone else). He used the Hypnosis to make everyone believe his Zanpakutoh was water-based and to hide his treachery. 

Then Aizen leaves for the execution grounds, where meanwhile Ichigo has arrived and saved Rukia, with the surprise help of Rukia's immediate superior, Captain of the Thirteenth Division Juushirou Ukitake and his friend Shunsui Kyouraku who rebelled against central 46 orders after a previous attempt to stop the execution the legal way by Ukitake was stopped. Angry at their betrayal, the Head Captain, Yamamoto, then engages his two former students into a fight, which is interrupted by Isane's Tenteikuura (a kido spell that allows a wide transmission, opening a screen in the air through which the user can speak and adress a large number of people). She explains her Captains findings: Aizen is alive and has betrayed everyone, the central 46 have been slaughtered by Aizen and all orders during the last month (including that of Rukia's retrival and execution) came from Aizen. Toushirou Hitsugaya and Momo Hinamori are receiving emergency treatment after being mortally wounded by Aizen. 

Everyone congregates on the execution grounds where to everyones shock Rukia Kuchiki's Reiatsu reappears, alongside Renji Abarai, who has since decided to help her and was running away with her, and Sousuke Aizen. Effortlessly, Aizen defeats both Renji and Ichigo and then makes them watch as he conversationally explains his reasons for targeting Rukia: Urahara, when he was still captain of the twelfth and the head of research hid the Hougyouku, a powerful artefact he had created and was unable to destroy, inside her. The Hougyouku is an artefact that can rip down the barrier between Hollow and Shinigami and Aizen needs it for his plans. While he talks, he approaches Rukia and then carelessly plunges his hand into her chest, ripping out the artefact. Surprised that Rukia survives the process unharmed, he then orders his subordinate Gin Ichimaru to kill her, having no further use for her. Gin complies, but his blade is stopped at the last moment by Byakuya Kuchiki, who takes the attack intended for Rukia to the chest and collapses. Uncaring either way about Rukia's survival at this point, Aizen reveals that both Gin Ichimaru and Tousen Kaname are his subordinates and have betrayed them all alongside him. The other captains try to kill the traitors in vain, who are protected by a suddenly opening garganta into Hueco Mundo. As they leave, Aizen shatters the last symbol of his kind, benevolent persona (his glasses) and announces he will become King. Meaning: he will create the Soul Key to break into the Soul Dimension and kill the Soul King, which will destroy all the worlds and everything living, to recreate everything to his wishes. The creation of the key requires about a thousand living souls- Aizen plans to eradicate Karakura, Ichigo's home town, off the map.

As he lies wounded Byakuya apologetically explains his reasons for both adopting Rukia and then doing nothing to stop her execution: adopting her was to fulfill a promise made to his late wife, Rukia's sister Hisana, who looks painfully similar to Rukia but who died after only five years of marriage, never finding her little sister, whom she'd abandoned. That promise included protecting Rukia which Byakuya tried to do by refusing her to become a seated officer as those tended to receive the more dangerous missions- but it also included not telling Rukia about Hisana. However, as he had broken the laws by adopting Rukia, he also made a promise at his parents grave to henceforth uphold the law, no matter how much it hurt. When Rukia was ordered to be executed he felt trapped between his two promises and ended up doing nothing, suffering in silence all the while.  
Rukia is pardoned and sent to her home to recuperate.

Ichigo is given the status of Substiute Shinigami and sent home, Urahara and Yoruichi are pardoned, though remain in exile by their oen choice. A recently recovered Toushirou Hitsugaya is sent with a small squadron of captain level Shinigami (he is the only captain though) to the real world, specifically Karakura town, to protect it, as both sides prepare. Arrancar, send by Aizen, begin to attack Karakura, engaging Toushirou's group and demoralizing Ichigo with their overwhelming strength, who is then approached by a group of Vizard to train him to use his inner hollow and regain his confidence.  
A hundred years ago, Aizen's secret experimentations resulted in six captains and lieutnants being hollowfied, a process the then captain of the twelfth Kisuke Urahara managed to somehow stabilize. But Urahara was blamed for the experiments and the victims ordered to be killed so with the help of Yoruichi Shihoin and Tessai Tsukabishi (Former leader of the Kidou corps), Urahara fled the Soul Society to hide in the real world, taking Aizen's victims with them. Since, the Vizard, as they began calling themselves, have split off from Uruhara's group, training to control and completely subjugate their inner hollow, which has given them access to hollow powers and made them stronger than normal captains and lieutnants.


End file.
